Love is an Art
by Warrior427891
Summary: Steven brings the Off Colors some things to draw with, but somehow he and Padparadscha paint pictures of their own… Steven x Padparadscha. Oneshot. Wholesome fluff.


**Just a repost from my AO3 account- Badaboom42. the other 3 SU oneshots on here can be found on there my story Lemonades (where you can have more tags and ships than on Fanfiction. So here I'm posting them separately.)**

**Hey guys! Wow, for just starting this thing I've been a terrible updater. A medley of writer's block, errands and a broken laptop have left me not much time to do anything on a keyboard.**  
**These are oneshots but I feel they're tiny :/ or maybe its just me. I'm not the most detailed person when it comes to writing, but I hope I write enough to satisfy requests!**

**Rating: Fluff, just some cute fluff. G for general audiences.**

**Sightshade, this is for you! It was weird writing this one, seeing as they haven't had too much interaction, but I hope I made it cute enough, it was a fun new ship to explore! Hope you enjoy!**

**On another note- I am in love with the new SDCC trailers and previews that have been released! I can't wait! I won't spoil them here but boy I love me some good CC content!**

**On yet another note- I finally got the chance to meet a baby cousin of mine. 2 months old, absolute chunky delight, babies are the purest beings alongside dogs and Padparadscha ;***

"Hey guysssWOAHH!" Steven yelled, toppling over Lars as they both fell over.

"Agh, Steven," Lars grumbled as they both stood up. The Rutile Twins giggled and walked over to greet Steven, followed by Padparadscha, Rhodonite and Fluorite. Steven made periodic visits to Lars and the Off Colors, introducing them to Earth's customs and getting to know them. Even jumpy Rhodonite was eager to learn whatever he had to offer.

Today, he had a big backpack full of paper and coloring items. He figured drawing was a good way for them to learn how to express themselves and have a little fun. Smiling as he remembered Peridot's early drawings, he emptied the contents of the bag onto the ground for all the gems to see. They crowded around in curiosity, watching as he separated the crayons and markers.

"Whaaaat aaaare thoooossee?" Flourite rumbled as she bent down to have a closer look. The Rutiles picked up a red marker and inspected it closely, while Rhodonite poked a piece of paper. Lars looked intrigued as he picked up a pink crayon, having not been able to write or draw since he arrived on Homeworld. He smirked and got down on his belly, grabbing a few more colors and sketching something.

"That's paper, Rhodonite, it's what you use to write or draw on. Rutiles, you're holding a marker. That's used to write or draw on the paper. It's like the crayons Lars is using," Steven beckoned to Lars, who was coloring what appeared to be him and the Off Colors standing together. "You use them to draw or write whatever you feel like."

"I have good news!" Padparadscha exclaimed, coming up to Steven from next to Fluorite. "Steven will bring us a new form of communication and expression!" Everyone chuckled.

"Thanks for bringing crayons and markers Steven. It's been a while since I've been able to draw," Lars gave Steven a genuine smile, handing him his piece of paper. "Give Sadie this sketch for me. I want her to know that I'm okay with all my new friends, and that I wish she could come and meet them." It was a cute drawing of all of them together, smiling. Not the best drawing he had ever seen, but it brought a tear. Lars had come so far.

Rhodonite smiled as she got down on her belly next to Lars, grabbing a purple marker and a green crayon. "Why don't we all draw something for Sadie? And for the Crystal Gems on Earth? This actually looks fun," she began scribbling, stopping for a second as she looked up, confused. "But what do we draw?"

"Anything you like. You can draw Pappy, or Fluorite, or an awesome battle sketch of the Robonoids, or some scenery of the Kindergarten," Steven suggested, handing Padparadscha an orange crayon.

"Thissss isss a wooonderfuuul ideeeeaaa," Fluorite grinned, turning to Steven. "Maybeee you can heeelp Padparaadschaaa with her delaaayed tiiime. Thiiis wooould bee a gooood exerciiiise foooor heeerr."

Steven glanced at the pink gem, who had lifted her bangs to peer at the crayon. For the first time, he saw her eye; it was like Sapphires eye, just a delicate peach instead of blue. He blushed slightly as she giggled and held the crayon up like a baby, looking absolutely adorable.

"Pappy, let's draw something together," Steven beckoned for her to come over, taking a sheet of paper from his stack and setting it on the ground in front of him. Fluorite gave her a gentle nudge, ushering her over to opposite of Rhodonite and Lars, who were arguing over what to draw. Pappy put her bangs back over her eye as she knelt down, sitting on her knees holding her crayon.

"Steven will ask me to color with him!" Pappy exclaimed, smiling wide as she held her crayon towards the paper. Everyone else had settled in and began coloring and talking, while Steven decided to take care of her.  
"Alright, just press the tip of the crayon to the paper gently, like that. Try tracing it to draw…"

About 2 hours later, the gang had created a thick pile of drawings and cards, as well as broken a few crayons and smushed just as many markers. Lars even added a few origami pieces for fun, but the ripped attempts of Rhodonite and the Rutiles lay crumpled nearby. Steven and Pappy were almost finished with their last drawing when the others decided to go on patrol.

"Hey guys, we're going to go scout the area one last time before Steven leaves. You gonna be okay for a few minutes?" Lars jabbed a thumb over his shoulder at an empty corridor. Steven nodded as Pappy continued filling in the background.

"Don't worry, we can hold down the fort back here. Stay safe," Steven waved bye as the group turned and headed out. He looked over at Pappy, who had finished coloring and held her hands to her face with pride.

"We will finish this drawing and it will turn out beautiful!" She squealed. Steven picked up the drawing and inspected it. It turned out pretty good considering the Rutiles broke the black crayon early on- it was Steven and Pappy holding hands and jumping up, smiling. She had even taken it upon herself to detail all the exit holes of the background, complete with shading. For crayons and neither of them being the best at drawing, it looked great.

"It's gorgeous," Steven complimented. "Let's add it to the pile." But Pappy had reached over and disassembled the pile, looking at each piece of paper and fiddling with the paper cranes and fortune tellers. She giggled as she tugged on the tail and head of a crane, making the wings flap.

"Aww Pap, we gotta keep it neat!" Steven grumbled as he picked up the drawings. While sorting them so they all lay on the same side, he decided to look at them. One was Sadie with a flower crown, another had Fluorite lying on her side like a French model- yet another had the Rutiles in a comic strip calling each other the uglier twin in a mirror. Steven laughed as he paged through the rest, not noticing as Pappy gathered the drawings together. She reached for the last drawing Steven was holding, Rhodonite striking a model pose. As she reached, he turned towards her by mistake, so her hand closed his instead of the piece of paper. He turned red in the face as Pappy held fast, her soft hand giving him butterflies, before she used her free hand to take the paper from him instead. Neither of them spoke for a minute as Steven's face matched the color of Pappy herself.

"I will comfort Steven and let him know I care about him," She spoke softly, guiding him gently to sit down next to her, hand slipping its way to clasp his fingers. "He must know that we all appreciate him and love him very much."

Steven smiled, tracing the facets of her gem with his fingers. Looking to his left at the set of light pink hair, he leaned closer to her in affection.

"I like the way you put things. You don't worry others over an uncertain future, you just make the past and present sound more beautiful. You inspire your friends and give them a positive outlook every day, and that's something no normal gem can do."

Pappy stayed silent, but rubbed her thumb gently across Steven's hand, leaning on his shoulder as they both looked out at the drawings and corridor, air still, atmosphere sweet.

"I don't live behind the moment- I simply savor the moment." And with that she leaned upwards and gave him a cute little kiss on the cheek.

**I hope you enjoyed, Sightshade!**

**(And my Fanfiction users!)**


End file.
